WEBVTT - What a Motorcycle Crash Taught Me About Risk, Faith, and Letting Go

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<v Speaker 1>This is Lee Habib, and this is our American Stories,

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<v Speaker 1>and we tell stories about everything here on this show,

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<v Speaker 1>our American Stories dot com. They're truly some of our favorites.

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<v Speaker 1>Up next a story from Brent Timmins. Today, he shares

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<v Speaker 1>with us a story entitled balance, Take It Away.

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<v Speaker 2>Brent Asher had left on his motorcycle for work at

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<v Speaker 2>his summer job. He had just graduated and needed to

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<v Speaker 2>make a quick stop at his high school to drop

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<v Speaker 2>off his bar, laptop, and calculus calculator. Thirty minutes later,

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<v Speaker 2>my wife answers the phone. The information she was given

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<v Speaker 2>was brief. Asher had had a motorcycle accident in front

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<v Speaker 2>of the school. They thought he would be okay, but

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<v Speaker 2>the ambulance was coming and may end up taking him

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<v Speaker 2>to the hospital. That was about the extent of the information.

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<v Speaker 2>Both of us quickly thought the worst, like he had

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<v Speaker 2>collided with another vehicle when either turning into the school

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<v Speaker 2>or coming out. The wording thought he would be okay

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<v Speaker 2>registered in my mind as non life threatening injuries. Where

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<v Speaker 2>would they take him was the first question out of

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<v Speaker 2>my mouth. Tina called the school right back and was

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<v Speaker 2>told it would be Nannacoke. We wondered how we would

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<v Speaker 2>know whether to go to the school or to head

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<v Speaker 2>directly to the hospital. This state lasted about three minutes.

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<v Speaker 2>I wouldn't call it hysteria. It was more like a

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<v Speaker 2>laser focus on how we were going to get to

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<v Speaker 2>where our son was. Than Asher called, He said he

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<v Speaker 2>was okay, described the situation and told us we just

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<v Speaker 2>needed to come get him and his bike. We know

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<v Speaker 2>our son well enough that this immediately put us at ease.

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<v Speaker 2>I hooked up the trailer and we headed off. It

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<v Speaker 2>was a relatively minor event. Asher was slowly turning into

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<v Speaker 2>the drive of the school. They actually caught it on camera,

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<v Speaker 2>and he hit a small patch of sand on the asphalt.

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<v Speaker 2>The rear end slipped out in a heartbeat, and he

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<v Speaker 2>ended up on the ground under the bike. The school

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<v Speaker 2>staff was fabulous. They rushed to his aid immediately and

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<v Speaker 2>watched over him in the nurse's office as he gathered

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<v Speaker 2>his wits and the shaking from the adrenaline wore off.

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<v Speaker 2>He had some scrapes, the bike had some scrapes, but overall,

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<v Speaker 2>he and his bike would be fine. This is one

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<v Speaker 2>of those things, one of those things that remind us

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<v Speaker 2>how quickly something can happen, which could alter the future.

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<v Speaker 2>It's one of those things that remind us to appreciate

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<v Speaker 2>every moment, one of those things that changes us, one

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<v Speaker 2>of those things we are thankful for because of the

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<v Speaker 2>lessons learned. Motorcycle riding is by nature much riskier than

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<v Speaker 2>riding in a car or truck. If you look at

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<v Speaker 2>the statistics, it's well, you don't even want to know.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a choice made with a known risk. We let

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<v Speaker 2>our boys make that choice with that risk, I ride myself.

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<v Speaker 2>Why would we do that? Would we rather our boys

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<v Speaker 2>didn't engage in such an activity. It isn't that simple.

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<v Speaker 2>A life lived without any risk is, well, it's not

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<v Speaker 2>really living at all. We take a risk when we

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<v Speaker 2>choose a college major in the face of uncertainty. We

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<v Speaker 2>take a risk in participating in a sport when we

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<v Speaker 2>may possibly be embarrassed by poor performance. We take a

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<v Speaker 2>risk in choosing a life partner. We take a risk

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<v Speaker 2>in changing jobs. We take a risk in buying a

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<v Speaker 2>home and committing to pay a mortgage for the next

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<v Speaker 2>thirty years. A life without any risk is a life

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<v Speaker 2>of not moving forward, it's not really life at all.

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<v Speaker 2>Of course, there are ways to reduce risk, and we

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<v Speaker 2>do those things and with a passion. At some point

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<v Speaker 2>there is a balancing of the passion to live and

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<v Speaker 2>the passion to walk in caution and wisdom, and that's

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<v Speaker 2>really part of the secret of life. People choose different

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<v Speaker 2>ways to go about it. Maybe you lean on your

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<v Speaker 2>faith in God, or maybe you lean on your faith

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<v Speaker 2>in yourself. Personally, I've been disappointed in my own strength

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<v Speaker 2>way too many times. At the risk of making you

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<v Speaker 2>feel like I've tricked you into a discussion about God,

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<v Speaker 2>I'll share this after we decide whether there is a

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<v Speaker 2>God or not and who that God is comes. What

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<v Speaker 2>I'd say is one of the most prevalent debates about faith.

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<v Speaker 2>What does God do and what do I do? People

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<v Speaker 2>fall all over the spectrum on this. It would take

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<v Speaker 2>me volumes to try to communicate where I've landed personally,

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<v Speaker 2>and honestly, who really cares what I've concluded. I'll just

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<v Speaker 2>say this, I want my boys to walk in wisdom,

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<v Speaker 2>to not be averse to taking a risk, and to

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<v Speaker 2>trust God in the midst of doing that. Take a risk,

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<v Speaker 2>ride safe, and live well.

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<v Speaker 1>Take a risk, ride safe, and live well. Wisdom and

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<v Speaker 1>all of those words. A special thanks to Monte Montgomery

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<v Speaker 1>on the production of that piece, and to Brent Timmins

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<v Speaker 1>for a short but profound story with some real, real

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<v Speaker 1>life implications as it relates to all of us and

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<v Speaker 1>our lives. And we'd love to hear stories from you

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<v Speaker 1>about this space. We spend a lot of time talking

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<v Speaker 1>about risk and risk taking. Our entrepreneur stories are nothing

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<v Speaker 1>but risk stories. A lot of people think entrepreneurs love risk,

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<v Speaker 1>but that's not quite right. What we've learned is that

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<v Speaker 1>they love to manage risk and that a life without

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<v Speaker 1>risk is not worth living, and so they manage risk

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<v Speaker 1>better than most of us and live within the space

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<v Speaker 1>of risk and real traumatic risk because it's how they're hardwired.

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<v Speaker 1>You can't make an entrepreneur any more than you can

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<v Speaker 1>make someone ride a motorcycle. It's risky business riding a motorcycle.

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<v Speaker 1>I've done it for many years of my life, gave

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<v Speaker 1>it up when I had kids, So I made a

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<v Speaker 1>very different decision about risk than this family did about,

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<v Speaker 1>for instance, riding a motorcycle. Then your risk stories, your

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<v Speaker 1>failure stories, because we love both of those and what

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<v Speaker 1>you learn from failure to our Americanstories dot com. That's

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<v Speaker 1>Ouramerican Stories dot com. Brent Timmins story who listens to

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<v Speaker 1>us in Connecticut on Spotify of all places here on

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<v Speaker 1>our American Story Liehabib here, and I'd like to encourage

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